Second Amendment Plan

When the Founding Fathers ratified the Bill of Rights on December 15th, 1791, they included the Second Amendment to ensure every American had “the right… to keep and bear Arms.” They went on to affirm that this right “shall not be infringed.” For more than 200 years, sportsmen, hunters, and lawful gun owners have embraced our Second Amendment rights, which we all share as Americans.

As a Constitutional Conservative, one of my top priorities throughout my time in public service has been to preserve and uphold this sacred right. During my time in the New York State Assembly, I strongly opposed the NY SAFE Act and led the charge to repeal this law that infringed on the rights of all law-abiding gun owners. In Congress, I have continued to fight against Congressional Democrats’ and the Hochul administration’s attempts to criminalize legal gun ownership and violate our Constitutional rights. In 2022, I led an amicus brief co-signed by 175 of my colleagues urging the Supreme Court to rule in NYSRPA v. Bruen that New York’s concealed carry law was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court agreed with my arguments, and Justice Clarence Thomas even cited them in his decision. NYSRPA v. Bruen was the most significant Second Amendment win in over a decade and it represents a major step in restoring our founders’ vision for our constitutional freedoms.

I will always fight against any efforts to infringe on our Second Amendment rights through new, unnecessary regulations that seek only to criminalize law-abiding citizens instead of keeping our communities safe. My plan will build on the progress achieved by NYSRPA v. Bruen by forcefully opposing efforts by Democrats in Albany and Washington to take away our Constitutional rights and regulate gun ownership out of existence. It also works to build upon existing efforts to safeguard our Second Amendment rights for generations to come.

Combating Governor Hochul’s Anti-Second Amendment Agenda

• Introduced H.R. 373, the SAGA Act: This bill prohibits states from further restricting the right to buy rifles and shotguns beyond federal restrictions. This would eliminate New York State’s radical anti-2A laws that make it more difficult and burdensome for consumers to choose the firearm that best suits their needs and style.
• Led a Letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi Regarding New York’s Second Amendment Infringement: I led a letter alongside Congresswoman Stefanik to Attorney General Pam Bondi asking her to review New York State’s anti-Second Amendment laws and uphold the constitutional rights of New Yorkers to keep and bear arms. Under Governor Hochul’s tyrannical regime, New Yorkers have seen more infringements on our rights than ever, the Concealed Carry Improvement Act being only the latest example. We must do more at the federal level to combat New York State’s intention to trample on our rights.
• Cosponsored H.R. 38, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act: This bill would ensure all states that allow concealed carry, such as New York, maintain reciprocity with other states with concealed carry permits. This would allow New York residents to maintain their concealed carry rights in almost every other state and visitors from other states to maintain their concealed carry rights while traveling.
• Cosponsored H.R. 3492, the GRIP Act: This legislation prohibits states and localities from using federal funding to store sensitive, personal information obtained during a federal background check. Under current law, the federal government cannot store information acquired during the firearms background process. The GRIP Act would ensure the federal government does not support any efforts by New York State to collect and store personally identifiable information related to legal firearm purchases and ownership. Gunowners should not have to permanently sacrifice their privacy or risk identity theft for simply exercising their Second Amendment constitutional right.
• Cosponsored H.R. 2442, the Freedom from Unfair Gun Taxes Act: This bill would prohibit states from levying any additional excise taxes on firearms or ammunition. Excise taxes are frequently levied on goods like cigarettes or alcohol, however states should not be levying additional financial burdens on law-abiding gunowners. California has already levied an additional 11% excise tax on firearms and ammunition, and New York could soon follow.

Protecting Privacy and Due Process for Gun Owners

• Cosponsored H.R. 563, the No REGISTRY Rights Act: This bill prevents the federal government from building a federal firearms registry by requiring the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to delete all existing firearm transaction records accumulated by the ATF. The bill would also require Federal Firearm Licensees (FFLs) to destroy their firearm transaction records once they go out of business, ensuring the ATF cannot accumulate these records. The ATF has no business maintaining a digital, searchable database of law-abiding gun owners that could be used for future gun confiscation. 
• Cosponsored H.R. 2184, the Firearm Due Process Protection Act: In 2018, Congress passed the Fix NICS Act, which allows individuals to appeal if information in the NICS system is incorrect. However, this process did not allow for any private right of action to enforce this requirement. This bill would allow individuals to seek court orders to correct false information in the NICS system if the FBI does not act within the statutory two-month window. 
• Cosponsored H.R. 2039, the Protecting the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Act: This commonsense bill prohibits a future President or Secretary of Health and Human Services from erroneously declaring a national emergency to impose gun control regulations. While President Trump and Secretary Kennedy are both strong supporters of the Second Amendment, a future Democrat administration would not hesitate to abuse their power to unconstitutionally impose gun control laws on law-abiding Americans. This bill will pre-emptively ensure this cannot happen and prevent future abuses of power.
• Cosponsored H.R. 1181, the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act: This bill prohibits payment card networks from creating a new merchant category code (MCC) for firearms. MCCs are used by payment card networks to categorize transactions, for example as “grocery” or “sporting goods”. Radical left-wing actors have been pressuring these payment card networks to create a special MCC for firearm retailers, allowing a future Democrat administration to quickly see if an individual has purchased a firearm and violate law abiding gunowners’ privacy. This bill would prevent this from ever being instituted and protect the privacy of those exercising their Second Amendment Rights.

Ensuring Access for Law-Abiding Gun Owners

• Introduced H.R. 4064, the Protecting Gun Owners in Bankruptcy Act: This legislation modifies federal bankruptcy law to allow an individual debtor to exempt from their bankruptcy estate one or more firearms up to a total maximum value of $3,000. No American should ever have to sacrifice their rights as Americans because of their financial situation. The Second Amendment is a constitutional right for all Americans, including those experiencing financial hardship. I am honored to lead this important legislation that protects the rights of gun owners everywhere, no matter their financial situation.
• Cosponsored H.R. 2930, the PROTECT the 2nd Amendment Act: This legislation ensures that residents living in federally-assisted housing may lawfully possess firearms. This commonsense legislation would ensure that landlords and rental property managers receiving federal funds and vouchers cannot restrict the constitutional rights of their tenants. The federal government should always stand in favor of individual’s Second Amendment rights, and allowing federal housing to restrict this right is unconscionable.
• Cosponsored H.R. 3033, the Protecting the Mailing of Firearms Act: Despite the US Postal Service’s (USPS) ability to ship long guns, current law prohibits USPS from shipping handguns. While common carriers, such as FedEx and UPS, can ship handguns, the USPS is barred from doing so. This antiquated law dates back to the early 1900s and is long past overdue to be repealed. This bill would simply repeal this law and prohibit the Postmaster General from implementing any rule that would interfere with USPS’ ability to ship handguns.
• Cosponsored H.R. 1041, the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act: This bill prohibits the Department of Veterans Affairs from reporting a veteran as mentally incompetent to own a firearm simply for using a fiduciary to manage their VA benefits. The VA should never be weaponized against those that served our country, and requiring assistance navigating the VA bureaucracy should not prevent a veteran from exercising the very rights that they fought to protect in service to our country. I have consistently supported provisions in the annual appropriations bill preventing the VA from taking such draconian action and will continue working to make this permanent law.

Your views are always important to me. Please write to me on my website or call my office at 202-225-3665 with feedback, questions, or concerns.